No. 19: Burgers, buzzsaws, bouffants & more
Hey, sweet groundhogs!
How's your February? My daughter found a free accordion on the street the other day, so our apartment has basically turned into a nonstop Judy Tenuta show. (I'm also beginning to understand how an accordion could be thrown out with the trash.)
Anyhowdy, let's peel off our boots and dive in ...
11 things I'm into this week ...
A few things teasing my hair at the moment:
1. I'm sure a bunch of you have seen RUSSIAN DOLL on Netflix -- it's a fast binge, and a satisfying one. Natasha Lyonne plays a very Natasha Lyonne-y New Yorker who keeps dying and reliving the same few hours/days. It's a little GROUNDHOG DAY and a little STRANGER THINGS, with a dash of BEETLEJUICE thrown in. The music is killer, too: This story about the show's Harry Nilsson earworm also includes a playlist of the soundtrack.
2. I'm nuts for Annie Baker, and this week I read her latest play, THE ANTIPODES. The whole thing takes place in a conference room, and you're never quite sure what the characters are supposed to be accomplishing ... which sums up 98% of meetings we've all attended! Anyway, it's funny and peculiar and deceptively mundane. (I started reading plays when my kid was tiny and time-consuming and I had little energy for anything else. If you've never read a Baker play, THE FLICK is a good entry point.)
3. Jake Gyllenhaal really goes for it in VELVET BUZZSAW, doesn't he? If you don't mind bloody art-world satires, this Netflix horror-comedy also stars heavy hitters like Toni Collette, John Malkovich, Rene Russo and Daveed Diggs.
4. RuPaul's podcast conversation with Frances Bean Cobain is a must-listen, if only because we haven't heard the 25-year-old speak too much about her childhood, her creative interests and, of course, her famous parents. (She has a healthy perspective on it all, which she says was helped by years of therapy.) The pair have known each other forever; here's a pic from the 1993 VMAs of RuPaul holding a crying baby Cobain.
5. In 1986, the city of Cleveland released 1.5 million balloons into the air in hopes of achieving a Guinness World Record. Was this a good idea? Heck, no! I stumbled across the short film BALLOONFEST the other day, and I suggest you watch to find out what happened. (It's only seven minutes.)
6. Bring on the spring cover songs! Here's Beach Slang covering Bob Mould and Lauren Ruth Ward doing The Divinyls. Ooh.
7. What's the best summer music fest lineup? Atlanta's Shaky Knees has Beck, Interpol, Tears for Fears, Liz Phair, Sharon Van Etten, Deerhunter, Mark Lanegan, the Dandy Warhols ... not too shabby.
8. The 1994 movie BACKBEAT is coming out on Blu-ray this month. I haven't seen this movie in 25 years, and I was SO excited when it came out because it was one of Sheryl Lee's first big post-TWIN PEAKS roles. It also launched '90s Steven Dorff, an era that came and went way too quickly.
9. At long last, Kate Bush's lyrics got the lush treatment they deserve. HOW TO BE INVISIBLE keeps capturing my attention at the bookstore because it's so dang lovely.
10. I *think* I'm glad Brian K. Vaughan's epic comic-book series Y: THE LAST MAN is finally coming to TV. About 10 years ago, I talked to D.J. Caruso about turning it into a film trilogy starring Shia LaBeouf. Of course, that didn't pan out. (And hey, if you've never read Y, pick up Vol. 1. It's about a world ruled by women with only one man left on the planet. You'll love it.)
11. Finally, I received a wave of messages Sunday night informing me that OMG ANDY WARHOL IS IN A BURGER KING COMMERCIAL. I loved the ad, and I really love that so many critics hated it. If only more ads were quiet and weird and featured great artists doing boring things, I might actually watch them. And hey, maybe it'll attract more folks to the extraordinary Whitney exhibition, which goes through March 31.
I'm so sad to report that Gary Maulsby died this week in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Gary was a longtime supporter of my former blog, Pop Candy, commenting frequently over the years as "ninjamonkey." His passion for pop culture and sense of humor led to deep, long-lasting friendships across the country; dozens of Pop Candy readers have posted loving tributes to him this week on social media and have changed their profile photos to honor him. Please consider donating to this GoFundMe page, which will help Gary's family pay for his medical bills.
Rest in peace, ninjamonkey. You brought joy to many, many folks.
... and YOU recommend:
PODCASTS: Nancy gives us a heads-up that the latest episode of Alan Alda's podcast, CLEAR + VIVID, features a delightful M*A*S*H reunion. Diane highly recommends THE GOOD PLACE: THE PODCAST for "a behind-the-scenes look at the show with writers, actors and special effects folks."
MUSIC: Ron recommends new music from Better Oblivion Community Center, aka Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst. Brannon loves Gaelynn Lea, "a folk musician/public speaker currently touring in support of her new album, LEARNING HOW TO STAY. She also won NPR Music's 2016 Tiny Desk Contest, which you can watch here."
MOVIES: Vincent is fascinated with Laurent Durieux's movie posters. "When I used to work at a movie theater, I loved getting to take home all the old posters when they came down from the boards," he says. "Durieux has such fun takes on some of the greatest films in history."
BOOKS: Tracey loves "the terrific mash-up of music study and memoir, BEYONCÉ IN FORMATION: REMIXING BLACK FEMINISM by Omise'eke Natasha Tinsley. "You don't need to be a card-carrying member of the Beyhive to appreciate Tinsley's vibrant analysis, connecting Beyoncé to Memphis Minnie and Loretta Lynn, among other impactful women in American pop culture," she says. "It's highly readable -- and highly necessary."
TV: Nancy is heartily enjoying "boozy Chris Pine" on TNT's limited series I AM THE NIGHT. (I need to hop on this train.)
Tell us what you're into! Email me (just hit reply) or leave a text/voicemail at 929-515-1988. I'll pass on your suggestions in a future newsletter.
After I linked to this Christopher Pike interview last week, I heard from several of you who also read (and reread!) his YA thrillers as a teen. "You inspired me to dig up my books," said Julia, who sent this pic and happens to have all of the same titles I did.
Adds Jessica: "I just reread quite a few Christopher Pike books that I had stored in a box in the basement, and let me tell you, they absolutely hold up. I remember my mother taking them away from me and hiding them when I was a preteen because she thought they were too mature for me!"
'Til next time ...
Email, tweet, text, whatever me. Dial 929-515-1988 anytime to hear my daily outgoing message and/or leave your own. Hearing from you always brightens my day.
If someone forwarded you this newsletter, subscribe here. Enjoy the week! Try a new food!
*says goodbye in Ubbi Dubbi*
Morf Vandewalt
"I do wear wigs all the time. I have at least 365, one for each day."
- Dolly Parton
"We have about two bags of old wigs that'll never amount to anything."
- B-52's singer Kate Pierson (1979)